Patents by Inventor Mitsuhiro Kaiya

Mitsuhiro Kaiya has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 8303200
    Abstract: A thermal printer with enhanced cutting performance includes a thermal head for performing printing on successively supplied recording sheets, and a platen roller for feeding the recording sheets. A cutter for cutting the recording sheets has a fixed blade and a movable blade. A main body unit supports the fixed blade, and a cover unit supports the movable blade and is removable with respect to the main body unit. A pinion gear meshes with a rack constructed integrally with the movable blade to move the movable blade. The main body unit supports the pinion gear, and the cover unit supports only the movable blade and the platen roller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 6, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 6, 2012
    Assignee: Seiko Instruments Inc.
    Inventors: Yasumi Yokoyama, Mitsuhiro Kaiya, Shinji Nureki
  • Patent number: 7825944
    Abstract: A recording apparatus includes a main body for recording on a recording medium, a protective cover which has an opening, for covering the main body with a portion other than the opening of the protective cover, and a waterproof cover which is connected to the protective cover via first and second connecting portions. When the first and second connecting portions are respectively in connected states, the waterproof cover is positioned so that the waterproof cover is opposed to the opening of the protective cover, and there is a gap for passing the recording medium between the protective cover and the waterproof cover. When the first connecting portion is in the connected state and the second connecting portion is in a disconnected state, the waterproof cover is moved to a position so that a part of the main body can be exposed to an outside through the opening.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 2, 2010
    Assignee: Seiko Instruments Inc.
    Inventor: Mitsuhiro Kaiya
  • Publication number: 20100086341
    Abstract: To provide a thermal printer in which cutting performance with respect to a recording sheet is enhanced, a thermal printer (1) includes a thermal head (34) for performing printing on successively supplied recording sheets, a platen roller (65) for feeding the recording sheets, and a cutter for cutting the recording sheets. The thermal printer includes: a fixed blade (30) and a movable blade (10) that constitutes the cutter; a main body unit (4) which supports the fixed blade (30); a cover unit (3) which is removable with respect to the main body unit (4) and which supports the movable blade (10); and a pinion gear (42) which meshes with a rack (44) constructed integrally with the movable blade (10) to move the movable blade (10), wherein the main body unit (4) supports the pinion gear (42), and the cover unit (3) supports only the movable blade (10) and the platen roller (65).
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 6, 2009
    Publication date: April 8, 2010
    Inventors: Yasumi Yokoyama, Mitsuhiro Kaiya, Shinji Nureki
  • Patent number: 7614809
    Abstract: Provided is a head support structure including: a thermal head (11) for heating a sheet material (5); a platen roller (12) for transporting the sheet material (5) being pressed by the thermal head (11); a head support member (13) for supporting the thermal head (11), which is capable of moving in a direction in which the head support member (13) is brought into close contact with or moved away from the platen roller (12); and a head biasing member (14) for biasing the head support member (13) to a side of the platen roller (12). Further, the head biasing member (14) is formed of an elastic material and includes a pressing part (14a) for pressing the head support member (13) against the side of the platen roller (12) and holding parts (14b) provided at each end of the pressing part (14a), for holding the platen roller (12). Accordingly, a structure of the head support structure is simplified and an entire apparatus to which the head support structure is mounted can be downsized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 10, 2009
    Assignee: Seiko Instruments Inc.
    Inventor: Mitsuhiro Kaiya
  • Publication number: 20070201928
    Abstract: Provided is a head support structure including: a thermal head (11) for heating a sheet material (5); a platen roller (12) for transporting the sheet material (5) being pressed by the thermal head (11); a head support member (13) for supporting the thermal head (11), which is capable of moving in a direction in which the head support member (13) is brought into close contact with or moved away from the platen roller (12); and a head biasing member (14) for biasing the head support member (13) to a side of the platen roller (12). Further, the head biasing member (14) is formed of an elastic material and includes a pressing part (14a) for pressing the head support member (13) against the side of the platen roller (12) and holding parts (14b) provided at each end of the pressing part (14a), for holding the platen roller (12). Accordingly, a structure of the head support structure is simplified and an entire apparatus to which the head support structure is mounted can be downsized.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 13, 2007
    Publication date: August 30, 2007
    Inventor: Mitsuhiro Kaiya
  • Publication number: 20070139505
    Abstract: A recording apparatus includes a main body for recording on a recording medium, a protective cover which has an opening, for covering the main body with a portion other than the opening of the protective cover, and a waterproof cover which is connected to the protective cover via first and second connecting portions. When the first and second connecting portions are respectively in connected states, the waterproof cover is positioned so that the waterproof cover is opposed to the opening of the protective cover, and there is a gap for passing the recording medium between the protective cover and the waterproof cover. When the first connecting portion is in the connected state and the second connecting portion is in a disconnected state, the waterproof cover is moved to a position so that a part of the main body can be exposed to an outside through the opening.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 30, 2006
    Publication date: June 21, 2007
    Inventor: Mitsuhiro Kaiya
  • Patent number: 5229788
    Abstract: A thermal head device operates while a recording medium is fed in its lengthwise direction for line-sequentially printing each image line along its widthwise direction. A platen has a plane tangential thereto to define a level of feeding pass of the recording medium in a printing zone thereof. A plurality of planar head segments are opposed to the printing zone of the platen in staggered relation to each other such that the head segments are arranged along a pair of parallel rows along the widthwise direction of the recording medium. The respective planar head segments have edge portions opposed to each other between the parallel rows in the printing zone, and are slanted relative to the tangential plane such that the respective edge portions are inclined away from the feeding pass of the recording medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 1989
    Date of Patent: July 20, 1993
    Assignee: Seiko Instruments Inc.
    Inventors: Seishi Shimada, Mitsuhiro Kaiya
  • Patent number: 5003323
    Abstract: A thermal line head device operates while a recording medium is fed in a vertical direction for printing dots line-sequentially along a horizontal direction according to bit image data corresponding to dots. A plurality of longitudinal head segments have a plurality of heating elements effective to print dots according to the corresponding bit image data, and linearly arranged along a longitudinal edge portion of the segment and deviated from a longitudinal center portion of the segment. The head segment are arranged in staggered relation along upstream and downstream rows such that the longitudinal edge portions of segments are opposed adjacently to each other in parallel between the rows so that the heating elements are linearly arranged in the horizontal direction between the rows a given vertical spacing. A line memory stores bit image data and distributes the stored bit image data to the heating elements in synchronization with vertical feeding of recording medium through the given vertical spacing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 1989
    Date of Patent: March 26, 1991
    Assignee: Seiko Instruments Inc.
    Inventors: Hideki Onuki, Mitsuhiro Kaiya, Seishi Shimada
  • Patent number: 4660052
    Abstract: Thermal printing is conducted as follows generally-used small-width thermal heads having an effective width equal to the width of A-4 size paper or B-4 size paper are arranged in rows, each of which has a plurality of thermal heads, over two parallel platens extending at right angles to the direction in which the recording paper is moved, in such a manner that the thermal heads in different rows are alternately in the direction of the width of the recording paper, whereby the heating resistors in the thermal heads in different rows overlap one another with respect to the direction in which the recording paper is moved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 1986
    Date of Patent: April 21, 1987
    Inventors: Mitsuhiro Kaiya, Masaki Denda, Masashi Shimada, Hideki Ohnuki, Mineo Ogura